Nixon White House Tapes ›Tape 699 › Conversation 699-006

Nixon, Cowen & Cook on Staff Departure and White House Personnel

Friday, March 31, 1972 · 12:00 PM–12:02 PM ET · Oval Office ·2 min

ParticipantsNixon, Richard M. (President);  Cowen, Eugene S.;  Cook, Richard K.;  White House photographerConversation699-006 onTape 699 (tape position 01:49:15–01:51:39)StartFriday, March 31, 1972 at 12:00 PMEndFriday, March 31, 1972 at 12:02 PMRecording deviceOval OfficeSourceNixon Library record for 699-006 ↗

AI Summary

President Nixon met with Eugene S. Cowen and Richard K. Cook to bid farewell to Cowen, who was departing his White House staff position to become a network executive. The President expressed his appreciation for Cowen’s service and presented him with a gift in the form of a money clip. A photographer was present to document the occasion, marking a formal end to Cowen's tenure.

Audio

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Transcript (AI-generated)

This transcript was generated automatically by AI (WhisperX) and has not been reviewed for accuracy. Names and numbers are often wrong; speakers are not identified. Do not cite it as authoritative — verify against the audio and the finding aid.

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Yeah.
Oh, yes.
There you go.
Network executive, right?
You left in January.
Are you already in the dark?
I know I'm here.
I'm here.
Yes, sir.
Great.
Very well.
There you go.
Thank you very much.
But, uh...
I know, I know.
I don't think there's anything you can do with the present sense of .
I don't mean to be an artist, guys, but .
I want to say about somebody, sir, that the mistake a lot of people make about the body is that they think they're all at war .
Oh, the worst.
Uh, would you like any, uh... We have coverage, Gene, haven't you?
I gave you coverage.
You have money, sir.
Did I give you money the other day?
I gave you money.
You make it a good money, don't you?
Yes, sir.
Look, this is the best thing we have, as usual.
We don't give them coverage, do we?
Self coverage.
We appreciate your work and keep in touch with us.
Don't let my brainwash you.

NARA Description

On March 31, 1972, President Richard M. Nixon, Eugene S. Cowen, Richard K. Cook, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:00 pm to 12:02 pm. The Oval Office taping system captured this recording, which is known as Conversation 699-006 of the White House Tapes.

Nixon Library Finding Aid

Conversation No. 699-6

Date: March 31, 1972
Time: 12:00 pm - 12:02 pm
Location: Oval Office

The President met with Eugene S. Cowen and Richard K. Cook; the White House photographer
was present at the beginning of the meeting.

      Cowen's departure
          -Network executive
          -The President's send off

      [Photograph session]

      Presentation of gifts
           -Money clip

     Appreciation

Cowen and Cook left.

Also recorded on March 31, 1972

  • 022-062 8:02 PM · 4 min — President Richard M. Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger talked on the telephone from 8:02 pm to 8:07 pm.
  • 699-001 10:13 AM · 1 hr — President Richard M. Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, Manolo Sanchez, and Henry A. Kissinger met in the Oval Office of the White House from 10:13 am to 11:14 am.
  • 699-002 11:14 AM · 24 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Rose Mary Woods met in the Oval Office of the White House at an unknown time between 11:14 am and 11:20 am.
  • 699-003 11:20 AM · 21 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Rose Mary Woods, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:20 am to 11:40 am.
  • 699-004 11:42 AM · 19 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Stephen B. Bull, Richard E. Bland, W. Howard McClennan, Louis Amabali, Lt. Tommy Arevala, Perce Bugbee, Dorothy S. Duke, Ernst R. G. Eckert, Roger M. Freeman, Robert Hechtman, Albert E. Hole, John F. Hurley, John L. Jablonsky, Keith E. Klinger, Dr. Anne W. Phillips, John A. Proven, Baron Whitaker, William J. Young, Howard D. Tipton, Clayton Willis, George T. Bell, James Casey, and White House photographer met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:42 am to 11:59 am.
  • 699-005 11:59 AM · 4 sec — President Richard M. Nixon and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 11:59 am to 12:00 pm.
  • 699-007 12:02 PM · 1 hr 39 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Ronald L. Ziegler, H. R. ("Bob") Haldeman, Stephen B. Bull, Rose Mary Woods, and unknown person(s) met in the Oval Office of the White House from 12:02 pm to 1:58 pm.
  • 699-008 2:00 PM · 6 min — President Richard M. Nixon, Alexander P. Butterfield, Rose Mary Woods, and Stephen B. Bull met in the Oval Office of the White House from 2:00 pm to 2:05 pm.

All 16 conversations from March 31, 1972 →

Cite this conversation

Conversation 699-006, March 31, 1972. White House Tapes, Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives. Audio and AI transcript via Easy Nixon, https://www.easynixon.org/tapes/699-006 (accessed September 18, 2026).